Monday, September 30, 2019

Body Discourses

Prejudice is just a word that can bring down all the dreams, all the island of that perfect world that one creates from day one. The beautiful tress that are the dream of all the human beings, of which the black people unfortunately are deprived of, is the basic human right that everyone is born with. The true reflection of the body discourse was revealed to me when I first met one of my friends who used to live in the Mississippi.There we sat together and she then spelled her entire world to me where she tells me how badly her family and all the black families of Mississippi were treated and exclaimed about the sufferings throughout her life and came out the other end with courage and honor. She also tells how unfair the white men were to the blacks, inside and outside of the courtroom or even to any legal proceedings that were important to them, to their lives and to their future. Prejudice is a hideous subject, and is still skilled today.After our conversation I realized how ignor ance certainly is bliss because it deeply disturbed me after I got to know of the treatment of black people by the hands of white people. When I asked her the reason of the destructed attitude to her and the black families she told me that the the black people were tortured and tormented for no reason other than that they were black. The black families, not only hers but all the black families were in the constant fear of the nightriders who would kill a man for looking at them the wrong way in those days.The wrong way meant that if only the black people would stare at them then even they would beat them up, they would even stab them and the law and the police would do nothing to them. It is for this reason that the black people tried to keep their eyes low and towards the ground and bear the degradation so that their families wouldn’t get hurt. She tells me how her father use to explain to her when she used to be extremely shocked and disturbed to see her father’s sca rs and bleedings as to why he would take them as part of supper and wouldn’t do anything about it.She says that she use to turn wild but her father use to tell her that it's not such a good idea to get involved as they don't have much to do with the white folks. When she questioned as to why not her mother would smile and say that the white folks are naughty, mean and trouble makers. She says that though her mother used to smile but she could see her eyes crying and her hear the deep thunder of her heart. When I came close to hug her I did notice that the honor and confidence that the black people possess. Prejudice is a terrible thing to encounter, especially when dealing with ignorant and dastardly people.It is bad enough that the white man treated the black man unfairly on an informal day-to-day basis, but it is so much worse when they carry it into the judicial system. In the book, the white men try to make sure that the blacks lose their land. To do this, the bank demand s more money than her father can pay, and there is nothing anyone can do about it. No one can go to the police or the courts to complain, for they are all ruled by prejudiced white men. My black friend had extreme fear and sorrow in her eyes when she told how the three white men went to court for setting a black man's house on fire, that black man was her uncle.She even told that they were proud to do so and when they went to the court the judge ruled very unfairly as was expected. The judge states that the crime that they committed was triggered by outside influences, and that it wasn't their fault. He implies that it is alright to do what they did, because the FBI agents that are in town are provoking them. Prejudice and partiality trigger the type of unfairness the judge shows. The judge was white, and so were the men on trial. What else could he do but acquit them? In his mind, the judge saw that as the right thing to do.She even tells that her first day at school was horrible, Girls and boys throwing dirt at her new clothes and spitting at her calling her a â€Å"dirt nigger†. She even says that once at school she and her white class acquaintance got hurt because of some accident, she was more of threatened by her teacher to help her giving her class acquaintance the first aid and nobody bothered to ask her instead. She went home with all the injury. And her mother was not startled to know what had happened to her rather she said to get used to the pain.The injury was so deep and so painful that the doctor said that it had formed the apses and the finger needed to be removed. Her story was making me realize badly and viciously the black people are treated, and how they were brave and honorable, and how the judicial system made spineless efforts to make black people as miserable and deprived of rights as possible. Prejudice is not something someone is born with, it is merely taught at a young age. In an ideal world, everyone would get along, and tre at each other fairly. There would be no such thing as hate crimes, discrimination, or deprivation of civil rights.The violence and terror levels would plummet, and the streets would be safer for today's children. The word prejudice would vanish, and words like equality and unity would have new meaning. She tells more about her getting nagged daily by the street boys and girls and the way they looked at her face. She said that at the moment she felt as if she was build with a garbage can. She says that she knew that her days at the school were of less time period because for her integrity and her self-respect could not be paid by any schooling. Three weeks of school and she was home.She says that her mother would cry over her decision because it was very rare that a nigger would be part of any school any education not even a good post was destined for them. But then they decided to shift to a new land. They were nomads and so travelling with less food and less water was most obvious. And so after the cruel and torturous travel they are here and I listen to their story. BIBLIOGRAPHY Read, Alan. The Fact of Blackness: Frantz Fanon and Visual Representation. University of Michigan: Institute of Contemporary Arts, 1996.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Warhol: the Flatness of Fame

THANK YOU all for being here this brisk March afternoon. I’d like to thank the GRAM for the invitation to speak in conjunction with such a wonderful exhibition, and especially Jean Boot for all of her diligent coordination on my behalf. (There are 3 parts to my presentation. First, a virtual tutorial on the process of screen-printing; secondly, a discussion of the formal and conceptual potential inherent to printmaking, and the way in which Warhol expertly exploited that potential. Finally, I will conclude with an actual demonstration of screen-printing in the Museum’s basement studio. In coming weeks, you’ll have an opportunity to hear much more about the cultural-historical context for Andy Warhol’s work from two exceptional area scholars, beginning next Friday evening with a lecture by my colleague at GV, Dr. Kirsten Strom, and on _______ Susan Eberle of Kendall College of Art & Design. As Jean indicated in her introduction, I teach drawing and printmak ing at GVSU. In other words, I’m approaching Warhol’s work very much as a studio artist. As a printmaker in particular, I’m predisposed to note the large degree (great extent? to which the innate characteristics of the medium – in this case screen-printing – enable and inform the meaning of Warhol’s work. At the outset of each printmaking course I teach at Grand Valley, I provide students a brief overview of the social history of the print; I divulge its rich heritage in the service of dispensing and preserving our (collected cultural discourse, from†¦) verbal and pictorial languages, knowledge and history, cultural discourse, from ancient scripture to textile design to political critique. In addition I cite the formal qualities specific to the print – multiplicity, mutability, and its recombinant capabilities. I open with this background as a means of framing the work students will produce in the course. I’d like to provide a similar overview here, as a means of framing the work of Warhol, which is so richly informed by the native characteristics of his processes. As the expression goes: the medium is the message; form and content are inseparable. First I offer a brief tutorial on the process of screen-print, in the hopes of providing a bit of context and a richer appreciation for the images/discussion to follow. â€Å"With silk-screening, you pick a photograph, blow it up, transfer it in glue onto silk, and then roll ink across so that the ink goes through the silk but not through the glue. †) The Imagery Warhol screen-printed images onto canvas in the early 1960s, and he began simultaneously to translate this technique to printing on paper. His subjects related directly to his paintings of the same period: James Cagney, the Race Riots, and Ambulance Disasters. These works on paper were printed in monochromatic tones and screened in a method that retained the graininess and immediacy of the mass media images on which they were based. Warhol considered these works to be unique drawings. Changes in the ink saturation and/or in the composition during the printing process created variations in each work. Screen-printing was ideally suited to Warhol in two distinct ways: First – technically, it allows him to harvest images from a vast bounty of sources. Secondly – he fittingly adapted a â€Å"low culture†, commercial process for the production of images chronicling life in celebrity-crazed, consumer-driven, Post-War America. One of the well-known strategies of Pop Artists – Warhol and Lichtenstein, among them – was their appropriation of the visual characteristics of mechanical reproduction (which you can see clearly here in Lichtenstein’s Ben Day dots pattern. Warhol went further than borrowing the language, employing the means of commercial printing itself. As of the 1930s, screen-printing was a widely-practiced process for the printing of posters, t-shirts, and other graphics in the US. In other words, Warhol chose this medium for its associations with the culture of advertising and shopping/consumerism. I want everybody to think alike. Russia is doing it under government. It’s happening here all by itself. I don’t think art should be only for the select few. I think it should be for the mass of American people. † But how exactly does one represent â€Å"the mass of American people†? Through it’s proxies: (A) Through the objects of its consumption : Campbell’s cans, Coke bottles, Brillo pads and Mobil Gas (B) Through the media icons it reveres, and (C) Through the images of anonymous tragic figures Disaster and death were not his primary concerns, but rather the anonymous victims of history – the masses. D and D evoke this mass subject, for in a society of spectacle this subject often appears only in stories and images of mass death. â€Å"I want to be a machine†: The History of the Print as a means/tool for social and political critique) Although screen-printing as Warhol practiced it is primarily a 20th century advent, the tradition of the print as a vehicle for disseminating ideas and information (as the vox populi) is centuries old. Among the earliest surviving printed artifacts in Western civilization are these two contradictory images: a Holy Picture on the left, and playing cards on the right. Each dates from the mid-15th century, each is the product of the same â€Å"technological innovation†, the wood block (and in the eyes of the Catholic church, working at cross purposes with one another! ) Many of the most widely reproduced and well-known prints in the Western world are images of cultural unrest and political and social critique. These are a few examples: Francisco Goya, 18th C Spanish printmaker William Hogarth, 18th C English printmaker Honore Daumier, 19th C French printmaker Kathe Kollwitz, early 20th C German printmaker Jose Guadalupe Posada, late 19th C Mexican printmaker â€Å"All of what I have to say is right there on the surface – Remarks such as this one are at times misconstrued as superficiality – a dismissal of content – suggesting to some that Warhol’s choice of imagery was indiscriminate. Especially today, Warhol is often mischaracterized through his studied, stoic affect – as an artist who felt nothing more for his work than for the contents of his local grocery store. I would argue that Warhol’s imagery is anything but indiscriminate, and is instead engaged in the popular tradition/rich heritage of the print as a means of social and political critique, especially obvious in the years between 1962 and 1980, from the â€Å"Death and Dying† series to the â€Å"Endangered Species† series. (Over this prolific period, Warhol’s ouvre included references to the Civil Rights movement, the death penalty, and of course the Cold War. Even the artists’ early celebrity portraits are shrouded with both private and public tragedy: Marilyn, Elvis, Liz Taylor, JFK and Jackie O†¦ ) To me, Warhol’s deadpan cynicism has always seemed a calculated critique of the turbulent social and political climate. It’s an ironic persona reflected in his works – an expression of apathy intended to induce the appropriate response from his viewers: shock and bewilderment that any artist, could produce images of graphic violence and human trauma with such apparent passivity. Multiplicity – The first of three formal qualities innate to printmaking â€Å"I like boring things. † â€Å"I don’t want it to be essentially the same – I want it to be exactly the same. Because the more you look at the same exact thing, the more the meaning goes away and the better and emptier you feel. † Such statements suggest a strategic, pre-emptive embrace of the very compulsive repetition that a consumerist society demands of us all. If you can’t beat it, Warhol implies, join it. More: if you enter it totally, you might expose it; you might reveal its enforced automatism through your own excessive example. These remarks reposition the role of repetition in Warhol. Here repetition is both a draining of significance and a defending against effect. This is one function of repetition in our psychic lives: we recall traumatic events in order to place them into a psychic economy. Yet the Warhol repetitions are not restorative in this way; they are not about a neutralization of trauma, for his repetitions not only reproduce traumatic effects, but sometimes produce them as well. Repetition in Warhol is neither a simple representation of the world nor a superficial image. His repetition serves to filter traumatic reality, but it does so in a way that points to this reality nonetheless. Ultimately I would suggest that Warhol’s use of the multiple functions as a form of potent cultural critique, whether it emphasizes the horror, or whether it desensitizes us to the violence in many of his images. Mutability – (â€Å"With silk-screening, you pick a photograph, blow it up, transfer it in glue onto silk, and then roll ink across so that the ink goes through the silk but not through the glue. That way you get the same image, slightly different each time. It was all so simple – quick and chancy. I was thrilled with it. †) The screen-printing technique affords artists the latitude for simple yet dramatic changes, from impression to impression. With little trouble, one can shift color, and even scale. The image can be altered through adjustments to the matrix (or stencil, in this case), or during the printing process itself, through the irregular application of ink. When I originally conceived of this talk, I intended to speak primarily to this one formal aspect of Warhol’s prints: his exploitation of the process to produce deliberate imperfections that (reflect the true disposition of his subjects) (inform the meaning behind his images. ) (further enable the content of his work. ) contribute to the flatness of his subjects – thus emphasizing their artificiality. Purposefully crude printing and mis-registration disrupt the pictorial illusion, drawing attention to the flatness of each image that, in a metaphorical sense, speaks to the nature of fame. Warhol’s arbitrary colors suggest the un-reality and artifice of each subject. These aren’t real people, but products, and you can have them anyway you want them. We construct reality the way we desire it to be – the lips are larger, more red, the hair is more golden; they remain young and beautiful forever. Marilyn image that disintegrates and fades out. Elvis that overlaps. – (silver screen/motion Recombinant Potential – The screenprint is among the most versatile of print techniques in regards to substrate. In other words, one can print on a diverse array of surfaces, including paper, wood, glass, plastics, textiles. The exhibition here at the GRAM demonstrates Warhol’s affinity for the aesthetic of the print on canvas – a practice that effectively elevated screen-print – a low-art technology of commerce – to the privileged status of painting. Their visual translation into the language of screen-printing homogenizes every subject; the queen, a skull, a shoe, a can, Marilyn, all become part of the same glossy, colorful language. In addition to one’s ability to print on a wide spectrum of surfaces, screen-printing allows an image to be â€Å"saved† (one may simply store and re-use the stencil or matrix in a later situation. Thus we see Warhol’s â€Å"vocabulary† (lexicon? ) of celebrities and other iconic images juxtaposed in shifting circumstances – being exercised in a language of signs. These (printed signs) juxtapositions can homogenize even the most horrific of images, emphasizing our mediated relationship to the trauma depicted. T his homogenization leaves space for interpretation – it can be argued that Warhol has intentionally treated the car crash and the Campbell soup as equal – not as references to the actual world. Alternately, it might be argued that the images are intended to shock a complacent consumer culture back to reality through conspicuously violent juxtapositions. By positioning such horrorific images in the proximity of the celebrity portrait, in the â€Å"low art† language of the advertisement, Warhol critiques a consumer culture lulled into apathy since the War by the numbing effects of Television, advertising, glossy celebrity tabloids, and the veritable glut of shiny new objects available for purchase on every store shelf. I’d like to congratulate the GRAM on a wonderful exhibit. Curator Richard Axsiom has done a marvelous job of pulling together a broad spectrum of Warhol’s strongest/most resonant images†¦and I’d like to invite you all downstairs/to the museum’s studio for screen-printing demonstration. THE IMAGERY: Celebrities or anonymous – these are images to represent the â€Å"masses†. Art should be for the pubic, but how do you represent the â€Å"public body†? – through the icons they look to, or the anonymous Marilyn image that disintegrates and fades out. Elvis that overlaps. – (silver screen/motion Warhol’s remark that all of what he has to say is right there on the surface is misinterpreted as mistaken as superficiality – a dismissal of content – argued that it supports indiscriminate images and passivity. I would argue that Warhol’s imagery is anything but indiscriminate, and is engaged in the long history of the print as a means of social critique. I want everybody to think alike. Russia is doing under government. It’s happening here all by itself. I don’t think art should be only for the select few. I think it should be for the mass of American people. How does one represent â€Å"the mass of American people†? Through it’s proxies, through its object of consumption, soup cans, Coke bottles. Media icons stand it for the body of the masses. Disaster and death were not his primary concerns, but rather the anonymous victims of history – the masses. D and D evoke this mass subject, for in a society of spectacle this subject often appears only in stories and images of mass death. Celebrity and anonymity represent the mass subject. Enter into/immerse himself in the language of pop culture. With silk-screening, you pick a photograph, blow it up, transfer it in glue onto silk, and then roll ink across so that the ink goes through the silk but not through the glue. That way you get the same image, slightly different each time. It was all so simple – quick and chancy. I was thrilled with it. † Warhol hand-printed unique silkscreen images on canvas in the e arly 1960s, and he began simultaneously to translate this technique to printing on paper. He experiments with subjects that directly relate to his paintings of the same period, as in Cagney, Race Riot, and the Ambulance Disaster. These works on paper were printed in monochromatic tones and screened in a method that retained the graininess and immediacy of the mass media images on which they were based. Warhol considered these works to be unique drawings. Changes in the ink saturation and/or in the composition during the printing process created variations in each work. Popular impressions of Pop reduced to candy – it was almost too effective in its critique, ceased to function as a critique – irony and sardonic qualities become eye candy only – another commodified visual confection. The profound flatness of images such as the soup cans – these images exaggerate the lack of roundness – these are cylindrical objects – void of their substance/their mass. Warhol Prints Not to overlook the obvious Flatness Repetition Imperfection Juxtaposition The multiple, mutable, recombinant image – Warhol’s prints are responding/exploiting each of the inherent potentials of the print. Reality as a mediated phenomenon is the subject of Warhol. Private fantasy and public reality is a primary concern of Warhol’s brand of Pop.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Factors of Stress among International Students in University of South Essay

Factors of Stress among International Students in University of South - Essay Example The universities in Western countries like UK, Australia, USA or Canada are considered as a hub of providing state of the art facilities to its students and educate them in a manner that they become more competitive in the employment arena as compared to students seeking education in their local national universities (Poyrazil et al., 2011). This is because of the low standards followed by local national universities or macroeconomic factors that have a direct impact on educational institutions weakening the education system. For this reason, Western universities attract thousands of international students who are looking for sophisticated knowledge management mechanisms and technologically driven education delivery systems. The international students’ population in the USA, UK, and Australia has increased greatly in the last two decades due to strength in purchasing power in emerging economies across the globe (Yan & Berliner, 2011). The trend of growth or an increase in the number of enrolment of international students in foreign universities reflects that the number of students is likely to continue to grow in the coming years (Eustace, 2007). It is evident that international students complete their studies in foreign countries with ease however, they still they need to cope up with challenges such as language barriers, cultural differences, and financial obstacles etc. These factors contribute to the overall feeling of being lost or left out that international students face when they move to another country for seeking education. In addition to these factors, another major hurdle is the lack of confidence amongst the international students, which stems from the differences in social interaction norms followed by the local students and international students (Sandhu & Asrabadi, 1994). On the whole, these stressors might become so severe that they start to affect international students’ academic and personal lives, which in return affect their e fforts to become part of the new cultural settings that they are not familiar with. As a result, the happiness level of being in a foreign country and alone reduces which contributes to the reduction in the morale and results in sadness or disappointment (Yeh & Inose, 2003). Considering this background, the current research work focuses on understanding whether or not international students experience stress en route to completing their studies in foreign countries.

Friday, September 27, 2019

This is a court of law, not a court of morals. Explain and evaluate Essay

This is a court of law, not a court of morals. Explain and evaluate this statement - Essay Example For philosophers like Plato there is a very close connection between law and morality as true justice is indispensable to human well-being. The field of ethics has often criticised legal arrangements and how the mechanical application of law provokes ethical and moral injustice.1 The discussion that follows will centre around and discuss the above mentioned conflicting themes in this area. Firstly it has to be seen whether the existence of unjust laws shows that law and morality are a gulf apart. Secondly whether the existence of laws that serve to defend basic fundamental rights like laws against murder, rape and defamation are a testimony to the compatibility of law and morality. Thirdly that the law only identifies offences and prescribes punishments for crimes and does not take into account the motives and morality behind a defendants actions no matter how noble they are. The fourth theme which is going to be tested in this regard is the internal or habit like nature of morality as opposed to law, as it is said to govern law without compulsion or fear of punishment. Fifthly whether morality can form the basis of making several laws illegal because they are immoral, no matter how procedurally valid they may seem. Last but not the least this essay explores whether the law can be a public expression of morality enshrining the basic principles of acceptable conduct wi th in a society.2 The statement in the question above comes from the very controversial case of Re A 3 (Children) (Conjoined Twins: Surgical Separation) where the parents of six week old Siamese twins, Mary and Jody,(M and J) appealed against a court order granting the NHS the authority to perform an optional surgical separation .The twin M had severe brain abnormalities, no lung tissue and no properly functioning heart and depended for her blood supply upon J which was her healthy ,normally

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Financial Management Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Financial Management - Case Study Example Every foreign exchange market is in a position to mitigate the risk of uncertainty occurred due to the variations in the exchange rates on cash flows of both payables and receivables. â€Å"Under the hypothesis of efficient foreign exchange markets, the validity of the Purchasing Power Parity theorem may take care of the company’s uncertainty with respect to the mean value of its foreign currency portfolio. The remaining uncertainty, i.e. the variance of the value of the foreign currency portfolio around its mean, can be reduced by hedging† (Soenon 2006). Under this kind of marketing, generally, there should be equilibrium between the estimated cost of hedging and the actual cost. In addition, the chances of risks and uncertainty will be higher in case of exchange rates and its variations. It is necessary to consider the uncertainty caused by fluctuating exchange rates on cash flows both payable and receivable. This is due to the fact that one of the important tools with the finance manager to determine the changes in cash in hand and at bank is the cash flow statement. The statement of cash flows, both inflows and outflows can be analyzed to reveal significant relationships. Cash generating efficiency is the ability of an organization or a company to generate cash from its current or continuing operations. To evaluate this, fundamentally, certain ratios are used. Similarly, free cash flow is significant in this regard. It is the amount of cash that remains after deducting funds a company must commit to continue operating as its planned level. Such commitments must cover current continuing operations, interest, income tax, dividend, and net capital expenditures. When the free cash flow is positive, it means that the company has met all its planned commitments and has cash available to reduce debt or expand. A negative free cash flow would mean that the company needs to sell investments, borrow money or issue stock, in a short term, to carry on its finance at the planned levels. Besides measuring the cash efficiency and free cash flow with the help of cash flow statement, the financial analyst also calculates various ratios on cash figures rather than the earnings of the company. Such major ratios are- 1. Price per share/free cash flow per share 2. Operating cash flow/Operating profit 3. Self financing investment ratio, which is the internal funding/ Investment activities (net). It helps to indicates how much of the funds generated by the business are reinvested in assets. It is evident that the concepts of investment and risk are related to each other. Every business entity aims to maximize its returns. The business that deals with the investment in different securities by the investors is beneficial to a great extend but at the same time is quiet risky. More

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Islamic world Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Islamic world - Essay Example when centered round the life of the Prophet Muhammad, or other significant events in Islamic history, touch upon leadership, and emphasize that authority comes from Allah and belongs to those of noble lineage: â€Å"of princely stock† (al-Mulk, as cited by Darke, 1960), or belonging to the house of the Prophet Muhammad: his â€Å"blood relations† (al-Tabari, 923. Battle of Karbala). The right of succession is also clearly delineated, to avoid dissension in the community. In general, the conceptions of leadership are mainly concerned with the importance of keeping the Muslim community together, the obligation of the community to obey the leader, and the qualities and duties of a good leader. The primary requirement of Islamic leadership is the unity of the community. The objective of a leader is to ensure that the Islamic kingdom â€Å"will endure and increase day by day† (Darke, 1960). This is relevant in the early days of Islam, when the threat of schisms and factions rising and leading to the â€Å"split up into factions† (Ishaq, 632) of the newly-found community was very real. God’s command to his caliphs is to confirm Islam, â€Å"consolidate its sway ---- and strengthen its ties† (al-Tabari, 923. Letter of the Umayyad Caliph). The unity of the believers is essential for the survival of the new religion, and the leader is urged to foster communal bonds and guard against any dissension. It is clearly stated that â€Å"a community can be saved only if it has a head who can unite it† (al-Tabari, 923. Letter of Uthman), and warnings against discord and schisms are repeatedly given. Islam ensures the obligation of the community to obey the leader by explicitly stating that the authority of the leader comes directly from God, and commands, â€Å"No one contests the rights of the Caliph† (al-Tabari, 923. Letter of the Umayyad Caliph). Obedience to the caliphate is equated with obedience to God’s will and is held out to be the path to happiness, well-being and God’s

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Controllers for Marine Engineering Systems Essay

Controllers for Marine Engineering Systems - Essay Example The era after the Second World War can be called the classical period of control theory. It was characterized by the appearance of the first textbooks (MacColl, 1945; Lauer, Lesnick, & Matdon, 1947; Brown & Campbell, 1948; Chestnut & Mayer, 1951; Truxal, 1955), and by simple design tools that provided great perception and definite solutions to design problems. These tools were employed using hand calculations, or at most slide rules, with graphical techniques. With the dawn of the space era, controls design in the United States prevented from the frequency-domain practices of classical control theory and back to the differential equation techniques of the late 1800's, which were inherent in the time domain. The reasons for this development are as follows. The model of classical control theory was very fitting for controls design problems during and immediately after the World Wars. The frequency-domain approach was suitable for linear time-invariant systems. It is at its best when managing single-input/single-output systems, for the graphical techniques were problematic to use with numerous inputs and outputs. Classical controls design had some successes with nonlinear systems. ... Consequently, classical techniques can be applied on a linearized form of a nonlinear system, giving good results at an equilibrium position about which the system performance is more or less linear. Frequency-domain methods can also be applied to systems with simple types of nonlinearities using the describing function approach, which relies on the Nyquist criterion. This method was first used by the Pole J. Groszkowski in radio transmitter design before the Second World War and complied with in 1964 by J. Kudrewicz. Regrettably, it is not possible to design control systems for complex nonlinear multivariable systems, for example those arising in aerospace applications, using the assumption of linearity and treating the single-input/single-output transmission pairs individually. Optimal Control and Estimation Theory In view of the fact that naturally-occurring systems show optimality in their motion, it makes sense to design man-made control systems in a best possible fashion. A major gain is that this design may be realized in the time domain. In the context of modern controls design, it is common to reduce the time of transit, or a quadratic generalized energy functional or performance index, possibly with some constraints on the allowed controls. R. Bellman (1957) employed dynamic programming to the optimal control of discrete-time systems, showing that the normal direction for solving optimal control problems is backwards in time. His modus operandi resulted in closed-loop, usually nonlinear, feedback schemes (Lewis, 1992). PID & Robust and Optimal Controllers for Marine Engineering Systems: An Introduction A Proportional-Integral-Derivative (or PID)

Monday, September 23, 2019

Visit Paper on Religious Sites Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Visit Paper on Religious Sites - Essay Example The paper "Visit Paper on Religious Sites" gives a detailed information about the church. The scriptures that were read came from the Bible. The people attending the service without the bible were assisted with one. The provision of the Holy bible made it easy to follow along the service. The bible had no symbols on it. The church had a lot of images that were noticeable during the service. The sitting arrangement and the position of the pulpit were different from the one on musicians’ corner. The priest sat at the center of the church in front of the Isle. Behind the priest were elderly men and women who occasionally consulting with other officials. The ushers are charged with the responsibility of welcoming visitors and directing them to the vacant seats. Each bench has a number of hymns which appeared to belong to the church. Ushers were busy mopping the seats and placing the bibles and hymn books before the service began. A groups of leaders converged in the vestry where t he service was planned. The form of worship was engaging and entertaining. Different songs that worship God were sung. The pianist and other instrumentalists appeared to direct the congregation in playing the music. A group of young men were using displaying the events of the service through Laptop and projector. This meant that songs were displayed on a large screen in front of the congregation. As a result, the congregation was able to sing along. You could tell the extent of commitment through the observation.... The readings were also displayed on the screen through the electronic Bible. It was noticeable that the same readings existed in a small brochure given to the congregants upon entry. In the brochure, the name of the preacher was written and the theme of the topic. There were a number of brief singing sessions. The mode of worship demanded that people conduct deep thought through slow but rich music popularly called worship music. After worship long leader conducted the songs. Some people knelt, while others just sat on the seats. However, others remained standing. There were mummers across the congregation as some attempted to pray in soft but audible tones (Moore, 59). Initially, it was really weak but grew stronger am more prayers were made. Some people looked emotional and literary broke down. Others never seemed to have an idea what was happening. Many seemed to be praying through closing eyes and being in deep thought. All this happened simultaneously. After the session of praye r, a lead singer appeared to call people to attention through a song. The most of the congregation stopped praying and joined in singing the song (Armstrong, 41). Then a prayer was made in unison. The prayer appeared to be entirely dependent on the intercessor. He was not referring to any script but addressed some of the contemporary issues facing the society. The prayer was directed to God through Jesus Christ as a source of Help. At some point the congregation was asked to stand and recite the Apostles’ Creed. This is a piece of text which is perceived to be the cornerstone of the Christian faith. The devote members of the Christian faith were supposed to recite the proclamation of faith through the apostles creed. The preacher had a designated place while preaching. The doctrine

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Constitution and Administrative Law Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Constitution and Administrative Law - Coursework Example The case was held by Lord Reid, that it was the state was liability to compensate the damage caused to the Japanese. This was awarded successfully. However, there was a retrospective Act of parliament that was formed 1965 following war damages. This law outlined that no compensation was to be awarded following a lawful order from a legitimate person in authority, as long as it is in the favor of the state. A Law is a body of principles; rules and regulations recognized and applicable to a state in the management of justice.3 Due to different areas of their application, laws are grouped into different categories such as constitutional law, administration law, and criminal law among the others. Constitutional law is concerned with the powers and role of institutions within the state and with the relationship between the state and the citizen.4 The constitution is a lively, dynamic entity which at any point in time; reflects the political and moral values of the people it governs. Accordingly, the law of the constitution must be appreciated within the social and political context in which it operates. There are three major arms of government including the judiciary, legislature, and executive. Judiciary is concerned with the enforcement of rules and regulations in the society. The main role of the legislature is to create and amend laws. The executive arm of government is concerned with planning and implementation of plans and developmental roles of government in the society. Every government has a law making body that is concerned with the amendments and creation of new laws in the society.5 Law changes and nature of rules are meant to boost efficiency and effectiveness of the governance of the people in the society. â€Å"The law making body of government is referred to as legislature and parliament is the sovereign body of the legislation in most states†6 Parliament being the sovereign legislative body has sole jurisdiction over its

Saturday, September 21, 2019

The hydration step Essay Example for Free

The hydration step Essay Oxidation is the major pathway for the catabolism of saturated fatty acids. It involves the successive removal of two-carbon fragments from the carboxyl end of the fatty acyl CoA (Champe, Harvey, Ferrier, 2005). The first three steps of this ? -oxidation spiral are the following (Murray, Granner, Mayes, Rodwell, 2000): Dehydrogenation or oxidation – the removal of two hydrogen atoms from the 2(? )- and 3(? )-carbon atoms, catalyzed by acyl-CoA dehydrogenase, yielding 1 FADH2; Hydration – the addition of water to saturate the double bond, forming 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA, catalyzed by ? 2-enoyl-CoA hydrase (also known as enoyl-CoA hydratase); and Dehydrogenation or oxidation – a further dehydrogenation on the 3-carbon, catalyzed by the enzyme L(+)-3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase, producing 1 NADH. The end-products of this pathway, after a few more steps and successive reentry of acyl-CoA into the cycle, are acetyl CoA, NADH and FADH2. The citric acid cycle is the energy-producing pathway â€Å"where the oxidative metabolism of carbohydrates, amino acids, and fatty acids converge, their carbon skeletons being converted to CO2 and H2O† (Champe, Harvey, Ferrier, 2005). Although it is technically a cycle, the â€Å"last† three steps are identified as follows (Murray, Granner, Mayes, Rodwell, 2000): Dehydrogenation or oxidation – succinate, in the presence of FAD, is converted by the enzyme succinate dehydrogenase into fumarate and FADH2; Hydration – the addition of water to fumarate to produce L-malate, catalyzed by fumarate hydratase (also known as fumarase); and Dehydrogenation or oxidation – the conversion of malate and NAD+ by the enzyme malate dehydrogenase to oxaloacetate, NADH and H+. The chemical conversions involved in the citric acid cycle that eventually produce carbon dioxide and water generate a form of energy that is usable by aerobic organisms (http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Citric_acid_cycle). Obviously, the first three steps of the ? -oxidation pathway and the last three steps of the citric acid cycle involve the same reactions. Both occur in the mitochondria of the cell. In both cycles, the first dehydrogenation (also called oxidation, depending on the source) involves a flavoprotein coenzyme with a FAD prosthetic group, and FADH2 is thus yielded. The hydration step in ? -oxidation and the citric acid cycle involve hydratase enzymes. The second dehydrogenation step in both cycles require the NAD+ coenzyme and produce NADH + H+. That having been said, the main difference between these otherwise similar reactions is that they have different substrates and yield different products. The last step in the ? -oxidation pathway is the splitting of ? -ketoacyl-CoA by the enzyme ? -ketothiolase (http://themedicalbiochemistrypage. org/fatty-acid-oxidation. html). This reaction produces an acyl-CoA derivative that contains two carbons less than the original acyl-CoA molecule that that underwent oxidation, as well as acetyl-CoA. The acyl-CoA thus formed reenters the ? -oxidation spiral, while the acetyl-CoA is oxidized to carbon dioxide and water through the citric acid cycle. The first step of the citric acid cycle is the initial condensation of acetyl-CoA with oxaloacetate to form citrate, in a reaction catalyzed by citrate synthase (Murray, Granner, Mayes, Rodwell, 2000). A carbon-to-carbon bond is created between the methyl group of acetyl-CoA and the carbonyl carbon of oxaloacetate. Acetyl-CoA transfers its two-carbon acetyl group to oxaloacetate, which initially contains four carbons, and a six-carbon molecule is then formed as citrate (http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Citric_acid_cycle). Both reactions involve acetyl-CoA. However, acetyl-CoA is the product in ? -oxidation, whereas it is one of the substrates in the citric acid cycle. Coenzyme A is required in the last step of ? -oxidation, whereas it is one of the by-products in the first step of the citric acid cycle. Finally, in ? -oxidation, two carbons are removed per cycle, whereas the citric acid cycle involves the addition of two carbons. References Champe, P. C. , Harvey, R. A. , Ferrier, D. R. (2005). Lippincott’s Illustrated Reviews: Biochemistry. Philadelphia: Lippincott Wiliams Wilkins. Citric Acid Cycle. (2008). In Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved October 7, 2008, from Wikipedia: http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Citric_acid_cycle Fatty Acid Oxidation. (2008). In The Medical Biochemistry Page. Retrieved October 7, 2008, from: http://themedicalbiochemistrypage. org/fatty-acid-oxidation. html Murray, R. K. , Granner, D. K. , Mayes, P. A. , Rodwell, V. W. (2000). Harper’s Biochemistry (25th ed. ). New York: McGraw-Hill.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Development of Parkinsons Disease Research

Development of Parkinsons Disease Research The Descendants In the spring of 1988, neurologist Larry Golbe at the Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Jersey conducted a routine examination of a 48-year-old man David. David was diagnosed with PD ten years earlier. A few weeks after the meeting, David died. After the funeral, Davids brother Frank came to see Golbe, as he was concerned that he also might have PD. After giving Frank a full examination, Golbe confirmed that he had the disease, and started a broad family study to search for any other relatives who might have contracted PD. During his examination, Frank told him the family originated in Contursi, a small village in Italy. Several months after Franks visit, Golbe got a visit from a woman with classic symptoms of PD. After Golbe had examined her, he wondered whether there might be something wrong apart from the PD. The patient, Joyce, told him she was of Italian descent, from a small village called Contursi. Golbe immediately made the connection between David and Joyce. He called his senior colleague Roger Duvoisin, and together they embarked on a complex task of medical detection. A year later, Larry Golbe went to Contursi, Italy to meet with Dr. Salvatore La Sala and his Italian collaborator, the neurologist Giuseppe Di Iorio. They plotted the family tree on a huge chart and found that David and Joyce were seventh cousins. They were two of 574 descendants of a couple who married around 1700. The remarkable finding was that 61 of the recent descendants had developed PD, and that descendants had a 50 percent chance of inheriting the bad gene. Golbe and his team collected blood samples from members of the kindred to take them to New Jersey for DNA analysis. Such analysis might identify the specific genetic mutation and provide clues as to how it caused PD to develop. In the years ahead Duvoisins team failed to capitalize on its discovery because they lacked the specialized skills needed to find the gene. On August 28, 1995, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) held a special workshop about PD. The NINDS director, Zach Hall, had asked Roger Duvoisin to present a progress report on the Contursi kindred. It had now been seven years since they had completed the family pedigree, and people were becoming impatient at the lack of progress. After the meeting, Hall asked Bob Nussbaum, a 46-year-old geneticist from the NIH, if he would be interested in mapping and sequencing the gene. Nussbaum was enthusiastic about the idea and suggested that he worked with his colleague Mihael Polymeropoulos. The geneticists used a process called linkage analysis to locate the gene. By taking blood samples from large numbers of both affected and healthy members of the Contursi kindred, geneticists can pinpoint the gene to a small region of the genome. Within nine days, Polymeropoulos and Nussbaum found the gene in a small region (band 21) of the long arm (q) of chromosome 4. The genetic zip code is 4q21. It took another nine months before they located the precise address within the zip code and sequenced the mutated gene. They checked the sequence against GenBank and found a hit. The mutated gene was called SNCA, which coded for a brain protein called alpha-synuclein. A single base change in the genes code produced a mutant form of the protein, which caused affected individuals to contract PD. Maria Grazia Spillantini, an Italian Alzheimers researcher working in England, had developed special staining techniques to visualize alpha-synclein in brain tissues. On a hunch, she used the stain to search for alpha-synuclein in brain specimens of deceased PD patients. Even though these patients lacked the Contursi mutation, she found lots of alpha-synuclein. She found it in Lewy bodies. As you recall, Lewy bodies are found inside the brain tissues of PD patients. In 1997 no one knew what Lewy bodies were made of. Spillantini had found the answer: they are made of alpha-synuclein. Heiko Braak, the legendary neuoanatomist at Goethe University in Frankfurt, was inspired by the discovery that Lewy bodies were made of alpha-synuclein. He embarked on a massive PD project. Using alpha-synuclein staining, Braak looked for Lewy pathology, and he hunted not only in the brain but in the rest of the body. He found that the location of Lewy pathology appeared to change as the disease progressed. Braak argued that this was compelling evidence that PD started perhaps decades before any tremor or rigidity appeared. He suggested that the disease was possibly triggered by an infection in the gut and/or nose and spread throughout the brain in six anatomical stages that mapped into the pattern of symptoms found in epidemiological studies like the Honolulu-Asia Aging Study. Stage 1: loss of smell and constipation Stage 2: REM sleep behavior disorder Stage 3: Classic PD tremor, rigidity, slowness of movement Stage 4: Loss of balance Stages 5 and 6: dementia (when the pathology spreads to the forebrain and the neocortex) Since the 1997 discovery of the alpha-synuclein mutation, some eighteen potential genetic forms of PD turned up. In 2003, a group of Mayo Clinic and NIH geneticists announced a discovery of another family kindred with an inherited form of PD. The team of geneticists had been hunting for the gene since the mid-1990s. First they looked for gene mutations but found nothing. Eventually they discovered that the Iowa kindred PD wasnt caused by a point mutation of the gene. They found that affected members of the kindred had extra copies of the normal alpha-synuclein gene on chromosome 4. That means more alpha-synuclein protein is being pumped into the affected individuals bodies. This discovery showed that you didnt need a mutation to get PD, too much alpha-synuclein can cause PD. The discoveries attracted the attention of the Cambridge Professor Chris Dobson. Four decades of research had convinced Dobson that proteins were implicated in a range of diseases from inherited diseases like cystic fibrosis to neurodegenerative conditions like PD and Alzheimers. He speculated that because many diseases appeared to be connected with misbehaving proteins, one day it might be possible to block several of these diseases with a single drug. Key Takeaways In 1997, Larry Golbe discovered the Contursi kindred with an inherited form of PD. Mihael Polymeropoulos and Bob Nussbaum pinpointed the mutated gene to a gene called SNCA, which coded for a brain protein called alpha-synuclein. Maria Grazia Spillantini discovered that Lewy bodies are made of alpha-synuclein, demonstrating the critical role of alpha-synuclein in PD. Heiko Braak classified the pathology of PD into six stages, depending on the pattern of Lewy bodies found in the PD patient. In 2003, a group of Mayo Clinic and NIH geneticists discovered another family kindred with an inherited form of PD. The gene is not a mutation of the alpha-synuclein gene. The affected individual has extra copies of the gene in their chromosomes. This discovery showed that you didnt need a mutation to get PD, too much alpha-synuclein can cause PD. The field is now poised to test a series of exciting agents designed to stop the spread of this rogue protein in our bodies and brains.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

The Foolishness in Shakespeares Twelfth Night :: Twelfth Night essays

The Foolishness in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night      Ã‚   William Shakespeare used a unique device to explain how foolishness is an unavoidable part of everyday life.   He employed many specific examples of foolishness in his comedy titled Twelfth Night.   Each of the characters he created were all foolish in one way or another.   Not only do the characters entertain the audience, but also educate the audience as they portray mankind avoiding obvious truth.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Shakespeare takes a humorous approach to expose the ways we fall prey to pride, vanity and self-deception.   As the story unfolds, the characters discover their faults before they can do any real harm to themselves or anyone else.   Fortunately, only embarrassment or humiliation are the result. Combinations of comedy, personality and irony are all qualities each character reveals to exhibit the many types of fools we can all be.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The most common type of fool in society is usually the simpleton, or a "natural" fool.   Sir Andrew Aguecheek is an excellent example.   Although Sir Andrew is funny, it is not intentional. His faults include a lack of wit, a tendency to be easily amused, and the opportunity to be manipulated by others to be accepted.   His foolishness is revealed innocently, as he considers himself a gentleman.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   His attempts to flirt with Maria by showing how clever he is fail when Sir Toby advises him to accost, in other words, to woo her.   Sir Andrew thinks "accost" is her name as he addresses her, "Good Mistress Mary Accost-" (I, III, 54).   After his embarrassing introduction to Maria, Sir Andrew tries to salvage his dignity by laughing at himself as he says, "Methinks sometimes I have no more wit than a Christian or an ordinary man has.   But I am a great eater of beef, and I believe that does harm to my wit" (I, III, 83-86).   It is clear that Sir Andrew is easily taken advantage of at his expense.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Another way foolishness is exposed, is through love.   For example, Malvolio loves nobody but himself.   Although he is Olivia's household servant, he considers himself better than others.   It is his vanity, arrogance, and pride that causes Malvolio to act foolishly.   Olivia says, "O, you are sick of self

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Muhammad Ali :: essays research papers

Muhammad Ali The greatest mystery of the 1996 Olympic summer games in Atlanta, was solved at 28 minutes past midnight the day of the opening ceremony. The crowd erupted when the Olympic torch was passed to Muhammad Ali. The Olympic gold medal boxer Muhammad Ali lifted the torch and trembled before a crowd screaming ‘Ali'. He then sent the fire soaring high above the stadium to ignite the ceremonial Olympic cauldron. This moment was truly one of the finest ever to many sports fan, considering the tragedy Ali has been through, he still executed the mission as a true champion. Ali was born Cassius Marcellus Clay in Louisville, KY., on January 17, 1942. He grew up in a poor family. His adolescence was influenced by a prejudice society, and the poor black neighborhood where he grew up. Ali had problems in school at an early stage and felt he wanted to do something different. His dreams were going to be fulfilled at an age of 12, when Joe Martin, a police officer and a boxing instructor, encouraged Ali to start with boxing. Ali showed great skills at an early stage of his boxing career. At the age of 16, Ali had won two Golden Glove Titles, two National AAU Titles, he was by now nationally recognized. When the 1960 Rome Olympic Game was about to take off, Ali was provided with an opportunity to represent his country. At this point he had fought 103 amateur matches, and had only lost five. Ali went with the Olympic team to Rome, and he did not only participate, he also won the precious Olympic gold medal. Ali returned home from Italy, and he felt that he had made a difference when he won the gold medal for his country. When he got back to his hometown, Louisville, he thought that he was going to be treated as a champion, but he was still discriminated by the white society. In anger, Ali decided to throw his Olympic gold medal into the Ohio river, as a protest against what he perceived as racism in his hometown. At this point Ali wanted to take a stand against the discrimination of the blacks in the US, and did so by his actions. By the age of 22 Clay had a professional boxing record of 19 wins and no loss. On February 25, 1964, Ali got the chance to fight for the world heavyweight championship. Despite his prior record, Ali was considered to be the underdog, few â€Å"experts† gave him a chance. Before the fight Ali used the media

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Mary Anne Warrens The Abortion Issue Essay -- Abortion Issue Mary War

Mary Anne Warren’s â€Å"The Abortion Issue† In Mary Anne Warren’s â€Å"The Abortion Issue,† children are not persons in the empirical sense. Warren believes that prior to a certain point in a pregnancy, the child does not have â€Å"the capacity to understand† the ramifications of what an abortion would be, therefore the abortion does not infringe upon the rights of the unborn fetus. She states that: â€Å"†¦in the ways that matter from a moral point of view, human fetuses are very unlike human persons, particularly in their early months of development†(152). In essence, personhood as defined by Warren can only come after the first trimester. Before that time, the fetus does not have the sentience that would make it a person. Warren’s main criteria for what makes a person will be considered first, then we will move on to her argument on sentience, and the differences she notes between a fetus and an infant. As she states in her paper, there are five main categories that empirically place something as a person. They include sentience, or conscious behavior, such as awareness of our surroundings, rationality: the ability to respond according to what affects us, self-concept: the ability to understand what we are, self-motivated behavior: the planning and carrying out of our own beliefs and thoughts beyond how we are externally affected, and linguistic capacity, or the use of a system to convey messages. Warren does not raise the answers to already obvious arguments when considering these ...

Monday, September 16, 2019

Practicum: Tour Guide and Elementary School

We talked about the destinations, accommodation and the budget for each group, because we're divided into 8 groups. The 4 groups are going to Sad and the other 4 are going to ‘locos Norte and Sure. March 26, Second day Sir Mann told me went to De La Sale in Taft Avenue to pass his papers and after that I went to Bambina and bought some medicine for our medical kit that we will be using for our Tour. March 27, Sir Mann told me went to Magmata to meet Mr.. Carlo, he is aBusinessman and my Job is to get his full payment for the Honking Tour, I remember that guy because he gave me a tip and treat me in a high class restaurant. I think he gave me the payment and it cost around forty five thousand pesos in cash so that day I feel Anxious and when I came back in our office I took a rest because we were having a tour on the next day. May 28, I Joined the ‘locos Holy week tour Sir Lieu San Martin and I were partner and we brought 50 Tourist or Clients.They came from different grou p so our mission is to make them friends before the Tour ends. I'm he one who's in-charge in money transactions, checking-in the tourist on their of our tour and my task for this day is to serve and remind the hotel to prepare their breakfast and to be a professional photographer because we coordinator are the one to took them pictures if they requested only. March 30 last day of our ‘locos tour, we went to Vagina heritage to buy some stuffs and shirts and after that back to Manila.WEEK 2: April 2- 8, 2013 April 2, we trainees taught to make a company email address and we made an account in slit. Com to promote some tour packages that we are offering. April 3, Sir Mann taught us how to answer phone calls and how to make a reservation for those clients asking for a tour or some promos that we are offering. April 4, Mama Promotion taught me how to deposit, withdraw and other banking transactions, the truth is I have no idea how banking transactions is processed and I sort out so me receipts and bills.April 5, Sir Ryan our Marketing specialist taught me how to make an ads and how to compute those tour price, accommodation and airline tickets that they are offering. April 6, another ‘locos tour is came so automatically we trainees are joined. We did the same thing like the last tour but this tour is the most unforgettable tour, because one of our clients sends a message to our company directly to Mr.. Mann our General Manager, the client complains are 1 . What a kind of Tour guide you have? 2. Your tour guide is making money on us. 3.The tour guide of your company is not well dressed. The complainant used other mobile number for us not to know who she/he is, by that day I don't know what to do, because I'm not expecting that would be happened. WEEK 3: April 9-12, 15, 2013 April 9, this is Holiday from ‘locos tour we came here at manila by 2 o'clock in the ironing and by 3 o'clock in the morning we went to Lucian, Guenon for our Success in the past Holy week tour and also an incentives because almost of our clients appreciated my effort in that tour and I am very thankful to those clients.April 10, 11, 12, I did some paper works like sort out receipts, print some documents, arranged the files, books, Fliers, Directories, Posters, answer phone calls. April 15, we trainees cleaned up the whole office and put some wall designs because some unexpectedly visitors from Department of Tourism would come. WEEK 4: April 16-19, 2013 April 16, on this day we are tasked to make some research about Minor travelers and airline codes, airport codes, airport rules. We did for the whole day is to read what we searched.April 17, this is the day of our quiz I remember that is a 100 items quiz but only two questions (it's weird right) I got 96 and my co-trainee got 94 so he failed and I got passed but I'm not putting up myself I'm Just happy because I didn't expected that I will passed the quiz. April 18, we were tasked to made a tour itinerary f rom Zebu-boll-campaign, I have no idea in that place so the whole day Im focused n that task and sir and I talked one-on-one about the itinerary I made and fortunately , I passed again because I defend my answer correctly and exactly it made my confident boost.April 19, Sir Mann asked me and my co-trainee to repost all of the ads we post in Slit, the purpose of reposting those ads is to make the clients easily look for that April 22, Just the same thing I did some edit and fix some files and ads on website. April 23, Deposit those payments of the clients in the bank, sort out those receipts again, answering phone calls. April 24, Mr..Mann taught us how to speak fluently and e told me some tips and reminders for me to knew that in the future we need to become comfortable and hospitable in our clients even though our clients is not in a good mood, do paper works, answer phone calls and other matters. April 25, tomorrow would be our last day so I review those tour packages that they're offers and repost it again. April 26, taking pictures of the facilities, gathered those information that I need for the completion of my practicum report and finished my 300 hours of Journey and unforgettable experienced in Tuesday Tours and Travel. General Perception of the training

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Brecht’s The Good Person of Szechwan is an apt representation of the theory of epic theater

Brecht’s Epic Theatre is a theatre of destroyed illusions and a wide awake audience which took birth from the theory of Korschian Marxism which saw ideology as a material force that served as an important tool of dominance. It is a theatre of instruction and hence is also termed Didactic theatre and because of the binary opposition present in its themes it is also known as Dialectical Theatre. The biggest aim of Brechtian plays is to alienate the audience to bring about an understanding which can affect change, Brecht terms this phenomenon as the Verfremdung’s Effekt (Alienation Effect or the A-effect), which comes from the Chinese play tradition. The audience is never one with the actor, they are always aware that the play is not real and that whatever is being presented on stage is not reality but a depiction of a certain reality. The ‘A-Effect’ is also known as the technique of defamiliarization wherein the familiar is made strange through alienation tropes such as addressing the audience directly, changing clothes in front of the audience, use of songs etc, which ensures that the audience is at all times rational, intellectual, and act as scientific observers so that they are able to question the industrial world and its authoritarian structures. As Walter Benjamin while summarizing Brecht’s theatre said â€Å"for its public the stage is no longer ‘the planks which signify the world’ (in other words, a magic circle), but a convenient public exhibition area. For its stage, the public is no longer a collection of hypnotized test subjects, but an assembly of interested persons whose demands it must satisfy. For its text, the performance is no longer a virtuoso interpretation, but its rigorous control. For its performance, the text is no longer a basis of that performance, but a grid on which, in the form of new formulations, the gains of that performance are marked†¦Ã¢â‚¬ 1 and so Bertolt Brecht’s theory of Epic Theatre transforms into its praxis in his play The Good Person of Szechwan. The Good Person of Szechwan is a purely Marxist play that deals with the social conditions of its milieu and how the people who are put in those situations react to it and towards one another. The major theme being that of survival in a world that is ruled not by goodness of character but by the evil and corruption of the society. The juxtaposition of poverty with plentitude is a leit motif in the play. Wang’s ‘The Water Seller’s Song In The Rain’ brigns forth this juxtaposition beautifully when he laments, â€Å"I sell water. Who will taste it? -Who would want to in this weather? All my labour has been wasted Fetching these few pints together. I stand shouting by my Water! And nobody thinks it Worth stopping and buying Or greedily drinks it. †2 Since its rainy season and there is plenty of water no one bothers buying the water from Wang and this plentitude becomes poverty for Wang. We start to pity Wang’s character when we realize that he is a proletariat and is burdened by poverty, but Brecht alienates us from Wang’s character by showing us his cheating and swindling side so that we rationalize his character and see him as the representative of the proletariat ideology of swindling and cheating. There is no Bourgeois enemy present in the play. The problem is within the proletariat and not amongst the proletariat and bourgeois. The problems that Shen Teh or the other characters face are due to their social conditions. The province of Szechwan can be seen as a microcosm of what is happening all over the world. Throughout the play there is constant reference to â€Å"hunger. † Hunger is seen as annihilating honor. Shen Teh’s hesitancy to take the God’s in is because she has an empty stomach. She says â€Å"†¦I’m afraid that a rumbling stomach is no respecter of persons. 3 The motif of hunger and poverty can also be seen in Brecht’s other play The Life of Galileo. The play starts with Galileo saying â€Å"Put the milk on table†¦Ã¢â‚¬ 4 and Andrea replying â€Å"Mother says we must pay the milkman, if we don’t he’ll be describing a circle round us, Signor Galilei†5 and later on when Galileo says â€Å"†¦an d I like to eat decently. It’s when I’m eating I get most inspiration. A rotten age. They haven’t paid me as much as the man who drives their wine-carts. †6 We are always reminded of the juxtaposition of plentitude with poverty. The play is dialectical in its split between Shen Teh’s self fulfillment and Shui Ta’s self preservation. It is the â€Å"inevitable clash between desire and fact and as the paradox of ends and means. These are two sides of the same coin. Shen Teh’s wish to be generous must employ Shui Ta’s profiteering meanness, or else she would be deprived of her charitable self. †7 Prosperity is associated with lack of goodness and â€Å"social conditions twist the natural goodness of human beings into opposites†8 and hence if Shen Teh wants to prosper then she needs to give into Shui Ta’s calculating nature. In The Good Person of Szechwan we have constant interruptions that are brought about by the musical interludes and all these songs work to alienate the audience from the play and to make them question the situation being presented in front of them. They are made to question the worth of Shen Teh’s goodness as it leaves her not ennobled but economically emaciated. Walter Benjamin says that, â€Å"the interrupting of action is one of the principle concerns of epic theatre. Therein lies the formal achievements of Brecht’s songs with their crude, heart rendering refrains. 9 and hence ‘The Water Seller’s Song In The Rain’ comes just after the love scene between Shen Teh and Yang Sun, disrupting the audience from getting involved in the play and again bringing their attention to the dialectics between poverty and plentitude. Brecht says that â€Å"in the epic theatre moral arguments only took second place. Its aim was less to moralize than to observe. â € 10 So we see that Shen Teh’s goodness is constantly thwarted by the social circumstances and harsh necessities of survival in a competitive world but no moralizing comments are made. The play begins on a note of despair and ends with one. For Shen Teh to survive it is necessary that Shui Ta also survives. The God’s in the play are ignorant, humanized and a satire on the hegemony in Christianity, questioning the absolutism of Christianity in the early twentieth Century. Instead of one god head we are presented with three Gods and none of them can do anything to lift Shen Teh out of the drudgery that she is a part of even though she is good. In the trial scene the gods are seen as nothing but impostors, their omniscience and all powerful stature is questioned. The idea of justice is questioned, deconstructed and done away with. Neither is virtue rewarded nor vice punished, instead vice is seen as a means to an end. Shui Ta is not punished for any of the crimes and Shen Teh is not rewarded for her goodness. Brecht here blends divine justice with legal justice by making the Gods don on the attire of the magistrate to mock at divine justice. It is a Marxist onslaught on the institutionalization of religion. In his other play The Caucasian Chalk Circle we have the character of Azdak whose method of delineating legal justice is more serious in purpose and intent as compared to the three Gods here who appear as mere fools. One is forced to question if justice is being delayed or if there is no concept of justice in an industrial world. The open ended-ness of the trial scene erodes the moralistic nature and it prises upon the mind of the audience and affects change. Brecht in all his plays comments on â€Å"Jetztzeit†, a term that Walter Benjamin coined for the presence of â€Å"now† in Brechtian plays. According to Walter Benjamin, â€Å"history for Brecht was an ever present arena, never as with Lukacs a thing of past† and hence we see that Mother Courage and her Children, The Good Person of Szechwan or The Life of Galileo all have topical references in the World War I and II, the failure of the Russian Revolution/Communism/Dictatorship and questioning of the viability and feasibility of science in a post Hiroshima-Nagasaki world, respectively. Also epic theatre is literarized. â€Å"The literarization of theatre by means of verbal formulas, posters, captions, is intended to, and will, make what is shown on the stage unsensational. 11 The performance is not aimed to draw the audience into the play but to make them stand at the periphery so that they question the bourgeoisie ideology and break free from it, so that the proletariat is emancipated and socialism can be constructed. Brecht believes that society can be changed through intellectual action and that is the reason t hat his plays are so highly dialectical. We see the dialectics between Good and God when Shen Teh as Shui Ta sings the ‘Song of the Defencelessness of the Good and The Gods’ â€Å"The good Cannot remain good for long in our country Where cupboards are bare, housewives start to squabble. Oh, the divine commandments Are not much use against hunger. So why can’t the god’s share out what they’ve created Come down and distribute the bounties of nature And allow us, once hunger and thirst has been sated To mix with each other in friendship and pleasure? †12 Gods here are seen as privileging the aristocrats and Christianity is seen as a perpetrator of class difference. The motif of hunger is again visible in the song. Hunger can not be satiated by following the commandments, one need to have money to buy food and that money comes not from praying but by being economically independent and well of. When the audience hears the song they realize the futility of religion in an economic world. It brings to the forefront the debate between spirituality and materialism. It makes the spectators question both the value of a bourgeoisie society and that of religion. Being but a Marxist play every theme is given a Marxist interpretation, even the idea of love and marriage. Shen Teh has to choose between Yang Sun and Mr. Shu Fu. It is as Shui Ta that she favors Mr. Shu Fu for he can provide her with a future but as Shen Teh her emotions sway her towards Yang Sun. In a direct address to the audience Shen Teh sings; â€Å"I would go with the man whom I love. I would not reckon what it costs me. I would not consider what is wiser. I would not know whether he loves me. I would go with the man that I love. †13 â€Å"As Shui Ta she knows the worthlessness of her charming but rascally lover Sun. But with her emotional feminine self, as Shen Teh, she cannot give up the physical passion and tenderness that bind her to him. In Shen Teh’s love the drive for self-fulfillment and the need for self preservation clash in hopeless combat that can never be decided. 14 Brecht in The Good Person of Szechwan presents us with a Marxist theme, a dialectical debate between poverty and plentitude, goodness and god, religion and materialism etc, all of which is made apparent to the audience by the alienation effect brought about by the musical interludes that are present through out the course of the play, Shen Teh’s changing clothes in front of the audience, direct address to the audience; in an attempt to make sure that the play raises questions in the minds of the audience and breaks their identification with the bourgeoisie ideology. In totality Brecht’s play The Good Person of Szechwan is an apt representation of his epic or intellectual theatre that is built on the concept of critical theory translating into intellectual action on stage wherein Brecht seeks to illumine historically specific features of a milieu in order to show how that milieu influenced, shaped and often battered and destroyed the individual. Instead of focusing on the universal elements of human situations and fate, Brecht on the other hand is interested in depicting the attitude that people adopted towards each other in a specific historical situation or context.

Quick summary of men and women in the Elizabethan era Essay

Roles of men and women in Elizabethan era Women In the Elizabethan era, women were dominated by men. Women had to obey every rule and order a man gives. Disobedience was a crime against their religion. They are expected to do the house chores, marry and have children. There was no school for girls in Elizabethan era, therefore women doesn’t have respectable jobs and have no status. Marriage is a way for an Elizabethan woman to increase money and position in the family. Their job is to keep their family healthy and also to keep the house clean. Men Men were superior in the Elizabethan era. They were to make the decisions in the family and women must obey them. Men are expected to support and improve the positions of their family through influencing and assisting them. Roles of men and women in Elizabethan era Women In the Elizabethan era, women were dominated by men. Women had to obey every rule and order a man gives. Disobedience was a crime against their religion. They are expected to do the house chores, marry and have children. There was no school for girls in Elizabethan era, therefore women doesn’t have respectable jobs and have no status. Marriage is a way for an Elizabethan woman to increase money and position in the family. Their job is to keep their family healthy and also to keep the house clean. Men Men were superior in the Elizabethan era. They were to make the decisions in the family and women must obey them. Men are expected to support and improve the positions of their family through influencing and assisting them. Roles of men and women in Elizabethan era Women In the Elizabethan era, women were dominated by men. Women had to obey every rule and order a man gives. Disobedience was a crime against their religion. They are expected to do the house chores, marry and have children. There was no school for girls in Elizabethan era, therefore women doesn’t have respectable jobs and have no status. Marriage is a way for an Elizabethan woman to increase money and position in the family. Their job is to keep their family healthy and also to keep the house clean. Men Men were superior in the Elizabethan era. They were to make the decisions in the family and women must obey them. Men are expected to support and improve the positions of their family through influencing and assisting them. Roles of men and women in Elizabethan era Women In the Elizabethan era, women were dominated by men. Women had to obey every rule and order a man gives. Disobedience was a crime against their religion. They are expected to do the house chores, marry and have children. There was no school for girls in Elizabethan era, therefore women doesn’t have respectable jobs and have no status. Marriage is a way for an Elizabethan woman to increase money and position in the family. Their job is to keep their family healthy and also to keep the house clean. Men Men were superior in the Elizabethan era. They were to make the decisions in the family and women must obey them. Men are expected to support and improve the positions of their family through influencing and assisting them. Roles of men and women in Elizabethan era Women In the Elizabethan era, women were dominated by men. Women had to obey every rule and order a man gives. Disobedience was a crime against their religion. They are expected to do the house chores, marry and have children. There was no school for girls in Elizabethan era, therefore women doesn’t have respectable jobs and have no status. Marriage is a way for an Elizabethan woman to increase money and position in the family. Their job is to keep their family healthy and also to keep the house clean. Men Men were superior in the Elizabethan era. They were to make the decisions in the family and women must obey them. Men are expected to support and improve the positions of their family through influencing and assisting them. Roles of men and women in Elizabethan era Women In the Elizabethan era, women were dominated by men. Women had to obey every rule and order a man gives. Disobedience was a crime against their religion. They are expected to do the house chores, marry and have children. There was no school for girls in Elizabethan era, therefore women doesn’t have respectable jobs and have no status. Marriage is a way for an Elizabethan woman to increase money and position in the family. Their job is to keep their family healthy and also to keep the house clean. Men Men were superior in the Elizabethan era. They were to make the decisions in the family and women must obey them. Men are expected to support and improve the positions of their family through influencing and assisting them. Roles of men and women in Elizabethan era Women In the Elizabethan era, women were dominated by men. Women had to obey every rule and order a man gives. Disobedience was a crime against their religion. They are expected to do the house chores, marry and have children. There was no school for girls in Elizabethan era, therefore women doesn’t have respectable jobs and have no status. Marriage is a way for an Elizabethan woman to increase money and position in the family. Their job is to keep their family healthy and also to keep the house clean. Men Men were superior in the Elizabethan era. They were to make the decisions in the family and women must obey them. Men are expected to support and improve the positions of their family through influencing and assisting them. Roles of men and women in Elizabethan era Women In the Elizabethan era, women were dominated by men. Women had to obey every rule and order a man gives. Disobedience was a crime against their religion. They are expected to do the house chores, marry and have children. There was no school for girls in Elizabethan era, therefore women doesn’t have respectable jobs and have no status. Marriage is a way for an Elizabethan woman to increase money and position in the family. Their job is to keep their family healthy and also to keep the house clean. Men Men were superior in the Elizabethan era. They were to make the decisions in the family and women must obey them. Men are expected to support and improve the positions of their family through influencing and assisting them.

Saturday, September 14, 2019

Dracula vs Blade

Essay – The Consequence Of Modernity The context of a point of time in history greatly influences an author’s idea to create a story, and for someone else to evolve them. Events occurring within society and the way people perceive other’s at a time also contributes majorly to the development of modernity. Bram Stoker’s novel ‘Dracula’ and David Goyer’s film ‘Blade Trinity’ contrast significantly as a result of difference in context. Weaponry had developed immensely over the two stories to cater for the advancements from one classic vampire to a fresh, modern, powerful one.The story of ‘Dracula’, set in Victorian times, consists of the simple, almost primitive weaponry, particularly ones of a superstitious and religious value. For example, Holy Water, Church Wafers, garlic and crucifixes were used mostly to ward off Dracula, but the one weapon to defeat him was a Bowie Knife, driven through the heart, causing hi s body to crumble into a pile of dust. These weapons used were suited to the times the novel was set in, and were designed to be a match for the current Dracula’s capabilities.An incredible contrast was cast between the weaponry in both texts, as ‘Blade Trinity’ evidently expressed the advancements of technology through the use of several variations of machine guns, assault rifles and pistols. Not only gun machinery was used, but also weapon ideas created for the movie under the category of ‘Nightstalker armoury’ such as laser bows and arrows, electronic pistols, and most famously known for destroying the modern-day vampire race, the Daystar Serum. This use of developed technology from Stocker’s novel to Goyer’s film created the effect of updated aspects to suit the change of attitudes in society.The intention behind these noticeable advancements of weaponry was to assist the technology to fit appropriately with the increasingly powerfu l capabilities of ‘Blade Trinity’s’ Drake. The acceptance and tolerance of violence within society would have also created a factor contributing to weaponry advancements, as weapons became incredibly lethal through the movie ‘Blade Trinity’. Due to the concept of society sharing a greater acceptance of violence in media, weaponry was the very opposite to ‘sugar-coated’, and was portrayed as destructive as possible, only serving the purpose to kill.This could have been a possible reason as to why the weaponry to fight off a vampire had developed so differently into such deadly technology. The above points help support the idea of context, and habits of society greatly contributing to the newer weaponry designed to suit and adapt to the ‘villains’ they are used to fight with against. The change in times can almost ‘transform’ characteristics of a character, as evident through the two comparing texts. Stokerâ€℠¢s Dracula and ‘Blade Trinity’s’ Drake display a great physical difference between them, which became obvious through comparison.Dracula’s dark appearance was firstly portrayed through Stoker’s novel as â€Å"†¦clad in black from head to foot, without a single speck of colour about him anywhere. † He was also described as sporting a heavy moustache, massive eyebrows, and bushy hair. He was of age, and wore distinctive and unmistakeable features upon his face. Appearance is an immediately noticeable difference between the two versions of head vampire, as Drake is portrayed visually as a modernised, young, handsome and clean-cut variation. He wore as clothes; a chest-bare, white buttoned up shirt and pants, as well as several necklaces.Already, the colour difference of garments is clear, as the fully-black clothed Dracula portrays a dark, classic look, whereas Drake sports a westernised uniform, almost perfectly fitting into the rest of so ciety. As exposed through the scene of Drake marching almost fiercely through the busy streets of an American city, his appearance assists him to virtually blend in with the rest of the commonly dressed, city-goers. Unlike Drake, Dracula unquestionably stood out from any person commonly dressed, even in the Victorian Era.This gave the effect of an obvious modernisation, and again, was an aspect created to suit the current audience and social habits. Differing context can prove to not only impact how a character is portrayed visually, but also how society perceives them, particularly with the uncertain concept of vampires possibly still being a myth or legend within both texts. Stoker’s Dracula was generally feared by his surrounding community, and believers of vampires tended to be over-superstitious of the danger he may bring to people.The myth of vampires was a topic infrequently found in an average conversation, as it was dreaded that even discussion would transport cursed luck and risks. Superstition is conveyed through the scene of the innkeeper’s wife delivering the ominous warning to Harker by cautioning him that â€Å"All the evil things in the world will have full sway†, before placing the Crucifix around his neck as a religious offering to hopefully serve the purpose of protection. This gives the effect that Dracula has a power above others, simply because they are fearful of him.Also, the way Dracula is written about expresses a sense that he may or may not intentionally give off an unwelcoming presence that tends to linger and produce a discomfort or fear among people within his surroundings, mostly in the earlier chapters of the novel. The contrast in comparison to society’s perception of Drake is tremendous, as the myth or legend of vampires is far from a secret in the 21st century world of ‘Blade Trinity’. It is seen through the opening scene that vampires are discussed commonly on news events, designed t o assert and inform the public of any danger emerging within the city.This shows immediately that the public is obviously used to hearing about the possible risks that arise with the company of vampires, which can again support the idea of rates of modernity and development does in fact depend of how and how often changes in attitudes and culture occurs within society. A scene example of the general whole of society’s views and perception in Blade Trinity was the tattoo parlour of which Drake had entered, and to his disgust, was mocked by several dozens of comedic merchandising, Dracula-themed products.Drake became visibly outraged, taking out his frustration on the shopkeeper’s, as he was clearly insulted with the modernisation progress vampires were experiencing, having some aspects of their lives portrayed a little too light-heartedly and humorously. This scene is an example of the great contrast of which seriousness seemed to begin to be lacking from the vampire my th concept, whereas such merchandise products supplied in the Victorian times would have been less than humorous.These examples again support any reason for change and modernisation occurring simply to adapt to the forever-changing social interests of the public. The average women of Victorian times were nothing other than lady-like, pure, and honourable without question. That is why there is such a severe distinction when compared to some particular hard-hitting, courageous and heroic females of the 21st century, such as ‘Blade Trinity’s’ character Abigail.Firstly, ‘Dracula’s’ leading female characters Mina and Lucy are great examples of typical, virtuous Victorian women, and are both also men-focused. Lucy portrays an obvious sexual magnetism, and cannot help but be drawn to several men. Evidently she is offered three proposals in one day, and proudly expresses, â€Å"Why can’t they let a girl marry three men, or as many want her, an d save all this trouble? † Mina is a different kind of man-focused Victorian woman, as she is far from sexually driven unlike Lucy, and cares only for further ways to be useful and valuable to her husband.The two girls possess common womanhood values, and act only as socially accepted as woman, which is to behave in a feminine and respectable manner, with the exception of acting as a sexual tease when desired. Whereas in Blade Trinity, it is seen that Abigail (a strong-headed, determined tomboy), is the complete opposite of the original characteristics possessed by Mina and Lucy. Abigail competes with the equivalent strength and determination of her male team partner Hannibal King, and is often the one rescuing Hannibal from danger.She possesses a fearless personality, and demonstrates brute-strength in scenes such as the train station, of which teenage-vamps’ attempt to devour her decoy baby and herself, but are stopped immediately once she whips out her lethal weapons , specifically designed for destroying vampires. She proves to be close to physically unstoppable, and has the willpower to take over the world. This swapping of gender roles is a reflection of what is currently recognised by society as a positive concept, as the 21st century’s restrictions on what woman are capable of in a man’s world are decreasing.Therefore a consequence of modernity would be that gender roles may have become less specific in society, which is reflected in the personality changes of characters of ‘Dracula’ compared to ‘Blade Trinity’. In conclusion, acceptable practices and cultures within society are what influence the advancements and modernisation of one story to another. Cultures are constantly changing, therefore ideas such as gender roles and technology within stories for example, will forever be adapting to the demands of society at that present time.

Friday, September 13, 2019

Managing Virtual Teams Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Managing Virtual Teams - Essay Example Under the virtual arrangement, we shared out work and through communication while students go home, with some going as far as Europe but make tremendous contributions than when we at campus where laxity seems to crop up. In terms of the discussion given by Ernst, Hoegl and Siebdrat (2009), it is true that there must be a good coordination of the virtual team in order for results to be realized. The authors confirm my observation that my team relied on sharing out work and an active group leader who ensured that the necessary contribution was done through communication. According to Majchrzak, Malhotra and Rosen (2007), certain effective leadership of the team is very important in the determination of success of the virtual team. A different perspective is given by Balsmeier, Bergiel and Bergiel (2008) who argue that virtual teams face many challenges among them is the remote capacity to deal with conflicts since the members cannot have an open forum for immediate response likely to iron out differences. It is clear that a more keen interest must be paid to more seasoned organizations willing to adopt the virtual team arrangement. Among the best practices which must be implemented include a clear definition of the targeted goals and rewards for the team (Briggs, Nunamaker and Reinig, 2009). According to the author, this acts as a reminder of the need to keep motivated since there is lack of physical motivators. The authors also reckon that focus must be sustained and directed on the tasks. Familiarity is among the team members assists in understanding the contributions that each member can make. This implies that a virtual presence must be established through appropriate leadership guided by set out standards. Training of the team members may be useful and ensuring expeditious approach may also require anonymity for independence as

Thursday, September 12, 2019

The behaviour of the young towards luxury products Essay

The behaviour of the young towards luxury products - Essay Example Since youth coming from rich families can easily afford costly items of luxury, gradually, a competitive attitude grows among people to acquire most famous and acclaimed items like perfumes, watches, goggles etc. Rather than collecting items for showing their economic worth, youth coming from middle class families are more inclined towards obtaining the items which, apart from being serviceable as symbol of status, should be able to pay them back the price paid for them by their proper utilization. The article (Neelakantan,1999) describing American youth writes â€Å"Changing luxury spending patterns like this arent unusual among todays new affluent shoppers who didnt inherit their wealth and didnt necessarily grow up privileged. Many have made their money in technology, through entrepreneurship or because of sheer talent in the sports and entertainment fields. And while this new crowd is probably spending more, it is taking the conspicuous out of consumption--showing less, with more style.† Edwin Colyer (2005,That’s rich, redefining luxury brands) writes â€Å"However you want to define luxury, though, one thing is certain: it is now commonplace and affordable. Disposable income has risen dramatically over the past 30 years and there is more money to spend on "extras." Luxury purchases are for celebrating an occasion, self reward or to show off status.† â€Å"According to the Census Bureau, there are currently 25.2 million teens, ages 13-18, in the U.S. Their purchasing power is substantial: If you add part-time job earnings, allowance and the average amount of their parent’s money they spend every year, teens comprise a $195 billion market. Over a third of teens hold part-time jobs, working 18 hours a week, on average, and earning $483 per month.† The role of spontaneous liking or disliking towards luxury, though not

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

ANTH 419 Anthropology of Religion Final Take-home Exam Questions (20%) Essay

ANTH 419 Anthropology of Religion Final Take-home Exam Questions (20%) - Essay Example The inattention to sexuality and gender contradicts with the liveliness of gender studies in the recent decades. Sex comes out as a multifaceted social construct, a phenomenon that is complex and is viewed differently by the society (Reilly & Scriver, 2013). Without any doubt, various religious rituals, beliefs and practices shape the gender and sexuality of people in the society. In most religions, if not all, certain practices are designated by the male part of the societies (Reilly & Scriver, 2013). The females are also required to act in a unique way as per the demands of those practices. Within any organized religion, there exist beliefs that seek to address the true nature of sexuality and gender and also the appropriateness of various sexual behaviors. People confined within such religions have diverging levels of agreement(s) with the doctrines of such religions. Gender and sexuality are crucial in religions (Reilly & Scriver, 2013). There are religions that lack the official ground on the purpose of sexuality or gender. These two are regarded by most religious beliefs to represent temptation, a gift, an emotional enforcement and a means of procreation. In many religions, sexuality and gender are deemed as spiritual (Reilly & Scriver, 2013). Others primarily treat the issues to be physical. Some believe that sexuality and gender are only spiritual within the limits of certain kinds of relationship when employed for given purpose. Other religions do not see the difference between the spirituality and physicality of gender. Such religions teach the existence of spiritual-physical mind and that sex and religion seek to fill the gap. Using the religious practices of the Jewish and Hijras of India, there is concrete evidence that religions portray the differences in gender and sexuality. Thus, the approach is to show various similarities and differences of the Jewish and

Tuesday, September 10, 2019

Business Ethics and corporate social responsibility(new) Essay

Business Ethics and corporate social responsibility(new) - Essay Example This is apparent in the company’s advertising and sales catalogues which depict aspirational youths maintaining the physical characteristics the company believes are stimulating to other youths who look toward reference groups to determine and shape their identities. The brand engages the desirable and shuns what the business considers the undesirable, the less attractive (Logue 2013). The CEO Mike Jeffries made an explicit commentary that the business hires only nice-looking individuals as sales representatives and managers in-store and that the company does not want people who are not cool to wear the company’s clothing (Levinson 2013). The majority of the branded clothing merchandise provided by Abercrombie & Fitch serves as a billboard for the company, presenting the business’ trading name in very visible and eye-catching font. As the CEO believes that this aspirational brand should retain its most loyal markets, this being trends-focused, attractive and yout hful buyers, the company believes that marketing to other market segments would depreciate the brand value of the organisation and make it less inspiring to loyal consumers. Offered the CEO in a 2006 interview (which has recently resurfaced in mass media), â€Å"Candidly, we go after the cool kids. A lot of people don’t belong in our clothes, and they can’t belong† (Levinson 2013, p.1). These comments angered one famous celebrity, Hollywood actress Kirstie Alley, who recently shed considerable weight and after having been the victim of media taunting about her explosive weight gain in recent years. Offered Alley, â€Å"blah, blah, blah, blah. That would never make me buy anything from Abercrombie. I’ve got two kids...they will never walk in those doors† (Winston 2013, p.1). In addition, advocates for the rights of overweight consumers have even developed mock advertising campaigns in an effort to bring public attention to the alleged unethical beha viours of the company. Figure 1: Mock A&F Publicity Exposing Hostile Sentiment about CEO Comments Source: LeTrent, S. (2013). ‘Attractive & Fat’ ad spoofs Abercrombie, CNN Living. [online] Available at: http://www.cnn.com/2013/05/23/living/abercrombie-attractive-and-fat (accessed 21 May 2013). The CEO responsible for creating this negative public backlash had, historically, stood by his comments, defending the statements as justifiable with brand strategy and corporate rights. However, with a sudden 17 percent drop in retail sales in the United States as a result of the controversy (Become Gorgeous 2013), the CEO offered, â€Å"We look forward to continuing this dialogue and taking concrete steps to demonstrate our commitment to anti-bullying† (News Limited 2013, p.2). However, prior to this apologetic statement, Abercrombie & Fitch had been the historical target of special interest groups and general societal stakeholders for unethical business behaviours associ ated with alleged pornographically-centric depiction of its advertising models and for offending youth markets that are, essentially, shunned by the business and its representatives. Sales continue to fall with this company quarter by quarter. Literature review – Ethical leadership and stakeholder values Some of those who argue that Abercrombie & Fit